Tynesha Stewart, 19, was last seen March 15.
FAMILY HANDOUT
March 22, 2007, 2:25PM
Deputies: A&M student strangled over another
By PAIGE HEWITT
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle
The 27-year-old man charged in the killing of a Texas A&M student told authorities late Wednesday night that he strangled the 19-year-old during a fight over another man.
Timothy Wayne Shepherd told investigators around 11 p.m. what happened to Tynesha Stewart, 19, who had been missing since March 15.
"They had a fight about their relationship, and her relationship with a new boyfriend," said Lt. John Denholm with the Harris County Sheriff's homicide division. "He said he choked her...He said he put her in a large plastic tote, and then put her in his car and took her to the Dumpster."
Denholm said Shepherd at first refused to cooperate but later changed his mind and confessed.
Authorities are investigating whether Shepherd physically abused Stewart in the past, Denholm said.
Stewart's body, which could be buried under an estimated 50,000 tons of waste and dirt, probably never will be recovered, he said.
Excavating the two landfills where Stewart's body may be — one in the Atascocita area and the other in Brazoria County — could run at least $350,000, Denholm said.
And, he said, it would take time and would probably require approval from county officials because taxpayers would likely have to pay for it.
"Any expenditure like that would most likely have to be approved by commissioner's court," Denholm said.
Such approval, he said, could delay the search and drive excavation costs up further, as 5,000 to 6,000 tons of waste are hauled to the two sites per day.
Private companies charge $6 to $7 per ton to excavate.
"Even as we speak, hundreds of tons of trash have been dumped, just during this conversation," he said.
Further complicating the recovery of the body are landfill regulations.
Denholm said Stewart's family has been told the body probably will not be recovered.
"They seem to be understanding," he said. "Everybody who has had contact with this family is impressed with their faith."
Stewart, last seen March 15, was spending spring break at her mother's apartment when she left with Shepherd, authorities said.
Investigators questioned Shepherd Wednesday and on Thursday, he confessed to Quanell X, who then contacted Harris County homicide investigators, who met them in Quanell's car near Shepherd's apartment in the 17700 block of Red Oak, Denholm said. At about 5 p.m. Wednesday, he led Quanell X and investigators to the trash bin.
"He told me, with the investigator in the car, where to go. He led us all the way, and when he stood before the Ddumpster, he broke down, and he said, 'This is where I put her,' " said Quanell X.
Shepherd was "absolutely stressed out," the activist said. "He said some things to me that were internally disturbing. He spoke about his family life, the traumatic experiences he had as a young man ... that God (had) forsaken him."
As they continued on the drive, he said, Shepherd confessed to the slaying.
"As I was praying with him and praying with him, I told him, 'Just take me to her. Show me where she is. ... you don't have to tell me what happened or how it happened, just take me to her,' " he said.
Quanell X said they stopped next to the Polo Club Apartments, and Shepherd pointed to the dumpster where he had placed the body.
The garbage bin has been emptied at least twice since Stewart went missing, and its contents may have been transported to different locations, sheriff's Lt. John Martin said. He said the waste management company is helping narrow down the search.
Gale Stewart, Tynesha's mother, said, "When I first got there and I saw the dumpster, I said, 'Just give him to me. I want to kill him, I want to kill him.' But that's not God's way. ... and for Timothy to do something like that, he could not have been a God-fearing man."
She said her daughter had broken off the relationship, but Shepherd refused to let her go.
"He was older, and older men tend to be possessive," she said.
Stewart's friends, meanwhile, let go of their hope and began to mourn.
"It hit me, but it hasn't really set in," said 19-year-old Kendria Smith, holding back tears. "It will take a long time to register in my head. I'm in total shock right now."
Smith met Stewart in the fifth grade. They were best friends with two other girls through high school, attending prom and homecoming dances together, playing basketball and singing in the choir. They all went to different colleges but kept in close touch.
"We're basically sisters," Smith said. "We used to call ourselves four-part harmony, because we would sing together."
Off-and-on relationship
Smith said Stewart met Shepherd while working at Pizza Hut in 11th grade. They dated until the beginning of this school year, when Smith says Shepherd got back together with the mother of his young daughter.
"Tynesha was really hurt," she said. By Christmas, the two had reunited, only to break up again in January. In February, Stewart had met someone new and was "on the verge" of a relationship with him, Smith said.
"I guess she just got tired of him being so insecure," she said. "I know he was really overprotective." Even after the couple broke up, Smith said, he continued to call Stewart, her friends and even her college roommate to check on where she was. And when three of the four old school friends got together for a late night dinner March 10, looking forward to reuniting over spring break, Stewart told them she thought she saw Shepherd's car following them.
"I could tell she was frightened, but I didn't realize the severity of it," Smith said.
When Stewart's friends realized she was missing, they realized something else, Smith said. Shepherd had stopped calling to check on her.
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